While gadget patents don’t guarantee anything, they can offer a glimpse into areas a company is exploring. Earlier, Apple was granted a patent (US-11571048-B1) for an Apple Watch strap release mechanism that could potentially be used with a built-in camera. That, on its own, is a neat idea, but it’s also the third camera-related Apple Watch patent we’ve seen in recent years. 

The patent application was originally filed in 2019, so Apple engineers have clearly had wearable cameras on the brain for some time. First spotted by Patently Apple, the patent’s abstract and description section detail a strap with two segments and a “nest” portion. 

The concept was to create a quick and ergonomic way to pop the watch out of the strap. That, in turn, could open up new ways to use the Apple Watch that aren’t limited to the wrist – like, as stated in the claims section, taking pictures with a built-in camera. 

This isn’t even the first time Apple’s filed camera-related patents for the Apple Watch. Apple was granted another patent last year simply titled “Watch having a camera.”